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Shooting Related Frequently Asked Questions

Historical Database of Gun Makers

The gunmakers in this database have been indexed according to the surname / family name of the original founder of the business, and the address shown in the index will be the earliest known address. This information may not be what you expect, so try searching initially simply by entering a surname or family name, or even a few letters of the name in the Lastname box. It is best not to be too specific but you may want to specify the country. We suggest that you do not enter any other information in any of the other boxes. Please note that in business names "and" is usually recorded as "&". If searching for a partnership, we suggest you enter just one of the names.


Country:
Area: County/State/Province
City/Town:
Search History Firstnames:
Search History Lastnames:
Search History Text:
Please do not be disappointed if the only information you find in this database is a name and address taken from a gun that has been sold at some time. Guns last much longer than paper records, and they may be the only record of the existence of a gun maker. Please note that gun case labels are dated by the information (such as addresses) shown on them; gunmakers sometimes used out-of-date labels so the dates given are approximate.

About This Historical Database

Every day, facts about the world's gun makers are being lost. Many families had gun makers in them, but as generations pass knowledge of them is forgotten.

Of course, our primary interest is not genealogy, but if you know there were gun makers in your family please let us know by sending us a prepared text ready for publication.

The Internet is ideal for capturing all the history we can, analysing and distributing it. If you can add anything to our records, a new name, an address, any details, a photo or scanned case label, a catalogue, advertisement, leaflet, copy invoice, photograph - we would be pleased to add it to our archives. If you are certain about the date of manufacture of a gun please let us know the details and the serial number of the gun. If you have any info please e-mail archives@internetgunclub.com.

We have attempted to record factual details in strict chronological order so that you can quickly see how the various firms started and developed. The histories are intended to be as concise and as clear as possible. In some cases we have additional unreliable or unverified information but, usually because it is too complicated to express concisely, we have not published it.

We have concentrated on firms and families, and have generally tried to trace the development of firms as family businesses. This is how most businesses developed in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries.

All gun makers had a "target" market, e.g. very high quality weapons for the wealthy (who seldom used them), serviceable weapons in a range of qualities (for those who did use them and whose lives often depended on them!), or military weapons. Usually, a gun maker changed his target market as economic and political conditions changed. Some gun makers were masters of creativity and quality, but we have tried to keep to the facts and avoid "gilding the lily". There were many gunmakers who could produce guns of extremely high quality, and not all the "Top" gunmakers made "Best" guns all the time.

Our researches have uncovered many "new" historical facts, they will uncover more but inevitably, most of the "known" facts have been previously recorded elsewhere. We are keen to acknowledge our sources and are very conscious of infringing the copyright of others; if we have done so, we apologise and will immediately remove/rectify any offending material. Below, we list our sources of information, and we will add to this list as and when we can:

Firms and Organisations

Atkin, Grant & Lang Ltd
Birmingham Central Reference Library
Birmingham Museum of Science and Industry
Birmingham Gun Barrel Proof House
Bonhams & Brooks
Boss & Co Ltd
A A Brown
British Museum
B E Chaplin
Christies
Churchill (Gunmakers) Ltd
Cogswell & Harrison
Crudgingtons of Bath
Dickson & McNaughton Ltd
Edinburgh Museum
William Evans Ltd
Farlows Ltd
William Ford Ltd
W W Greener Ltd
Greenfields of Salisbury
Guildhall Library, London
Holland & Holland Ltd
Holt & Co
Imperial War Museum
Johnsons Barrel Browners
Parker-Hale Ltd
The Patent Office
William Powell & Son Ltd
James Purdey & Sons Ltd
John Rigby & Co Ltd
Westley Richards & Co Ltd
Royal Artillery Library
The Royal Armouries
Sothebys
H M Stationary Office
Victoria and Albert Museum
West London Shooting Grounds
John Wilkes
Wilkinson Sword Ltd
The Worshipful Company of Gunmakers

Books etc:

Abridgements of the Patent Specifications relating to Fire-Arms and other Weapons, Ammunitions and accoutrements 1588-1858	Holland Press Ltd
Adams Revolvers	W H J Chamberlain & A W F Taylerson
Ancient Scottish Weapons	J Drummond
Antique Guns	H W Bowman
Antique Pistol Collecting	Jas. Frith & R Andrews
The Art of Shooting	Charles Lancaster
Atkin, Grant & Lang	D Masters
Automatic Pistols	H B C Pollard
The Badminton Library - Shooting	Lord Walsingham & Sir Ralph Payne Gallwey
Bicentenary of a Gunmaker	J E Peskett
The Big Game Rifle	Jack O'Connor
Birmingham Gun Trade	D Williams
Birmingham Gunmakers	Douglas Tate
The Book of the Rifle	T F Freemantle
The Book of the Pistol and Revolver	H B C Pollard
Boothroyd's Revised Directory of British Gunmakers	Geoffrey Boothroyd
Boss & Co	Donald Dallas
British Gun Engraving	Douglas Tate
British Gunmakers	W Keith Neal & D H L Back
British Gunmakers Vol Two	Nigel Brown
British Military Firearms 1650-1850	Howard L Blackmore
British Pistols and Guns 1640-1840	Ian Glendinning
The British Shotgun Vol I & II	I Crudgington and D Baker
Canadian Gunsmiths	John A Belton
The Cape Gunsmiths	B M Berkovitch
Cartridges	H C Logan
Cartridges for Collectors	Fred A Datig
A Century of Guns	H J A Blanch
The House of Churchill	D Masters
Classic Sporting Rifles	Christopher Austyn
Cogswell & Harrison	Cooley & Newton
Collecting Shotgun Cartridges	C Ken Rutterford
Colt Firearms	James E Serven
Colt Pistols 1836-1976	R L Wilson
Complete Guide to Gunsmithing	C E Chapel
The Craft of the Gunsmith	G W Spearing
Deane's Manual of the History and Science Of Firearms	J Deane
Debrett's Book of Game Cards	Lord Ralph Percy
The Diary of Col. Peter Hawker 1802-1853	Col Peter Hawker
Digest of Cartridges	W A Bartlett & D B Gallatin
Early Loading Tools and Bullet Moulds	R H Chamberlain
Early American Firearms	Robert Abels
Early Percussion Firearms	Lewis Winant
Elements of Shooting	Eric Parker
The Eley Story	D Thomas
English Gunmakers	De Witt Bailey & Douglas A Nie
English, Irish and Scottish Firearms Makers	A Mervyn Carey
English Guns and Rifles	John Nigel George
English Pistols	Howard L Blackmore
English Pistols and Revolvers	John Nigel George
The English Springer Spaniel	Mary C Scott
English Springer Spaniels	Frank Warner Hill
European Firearms	J F Hayward
Experts on Guns and Shooting	G T Teasdale-Buckell
A Dictionary of London Gunmakers	Howard L Blackmore
Game Guns and Rifles	Richard Akehurst
Great British Gunmakers - The Mantons	W Keith Neal & D H L Back
Great British Gunmakers - The Manton Supplement	W Keith Neal & D H L Back
Great British Gunmakers - Forsyth & Co	W Keith Neal & D H L Back
The Greener Story	Graham Greener
Gun Collecting	Charles Chapel
The Gun	William Greener
The Gun and its Development	W W Greener
The Gun Collectors Handbook of Values	Charles Chapel
Gundogs: Training and Fieldtrials	P R A Moxon
Gunfitting: The Quest for Perfection	Michael Yardley
Gunmakers of London 1350-1850	Howard L Blackmore
Gunmakers of London Supplement	Howard L Blackmore
Gunnery in 1858	William Greener
The Gunsmiths of Manhattan	Michael H Lewis
Gun Trade Handbook	Birmingham and Provincial Gunmakers Association
Haandskydevaabens Bedommelse	J F Stockel
Heer Der Neue Stockel	J F Stockel; Eugene Heer
History and Development of Small Arms Ammunition	G A Hoyem
A History of Firearms	H B C Pollard
History of Firearms	W Y A Carman
History of the Birmingham Gun Barrel Proof House	C Harris
History of W & C Scott, Gunmakers	J A Crawford and P G Whatley
Holland & Holland	Donald Dallas
Instructions to Young Sportsmen	Lt. Col. P Hawker
In the Gunroom	Major Sir Gerald Burrard Bt
Inventory and Survey of the Armouries of the Tower of London	Charles J Ffoulkes

List of Gunmakers	W H R Robson
The Kentucky Rifle	John Dillin
London Gunmakers	Nigel Brown
London Gunmakers and the English Duelling Pistol	Keith R Dill

Modern Breech Loaders	W W Greener
The Modern Shotgun	Major Sir Gerald Burrard Bt
More Single Shot Rifles	James R Grant
The Muzzle Loading Rifle, Then and Now	Walter Cline
Notes on the Proof of Shotguns and Other Small Arms	British Proof Authorities
Old Guns and Pistols	Noel Boston
Pennsylvania Gunmakers	Roy F Chandler and James B Whisker
Pistols and Revolvers	Julian Hatcher
Pollard's History of Firearms	C Blair
The Early Purdeys	L Patrick Unsworth
Purdey's - The Guns and the Family	Richard Beaumont
Purdey: The Definitive History	C Donald Dallas
HRH Prince of Wales's Sport in India	B C Ellison
King Edward VII as a Sportsman	A T Watson
Remington Hand Guns	C L Carr and C B Carr
The Rev. Alexander John Forsyth	A J F Reid
The Rifle	S R Truesdell
Rifles and Volunteer Rifle Corps	L Jewitt
The Rifle and How to Use It	H Busk
Sir Charles Ross and his Rifle	R Phillips & J J Knap
The Royal Gunroom at Sandringham	David Baker
The Science of Gunnery	William Greener
Scottish Arms Makers	Charles E Whitelaw
The Shooting Field - 150 Years with Holland & Holland	P King
A Treatise on the Snider	I Skennerton
Shooting - its Appliances, Practice and Purpose	J D Dougall
Shooting the British Double Rifle	Graeme Wright
Shotguns	H B C Pollard
Shotguns and Gunsmiths	Geoffrey Boothroyd
Shotgun Marksmanship	Percy Stanbury & G L Carlisle
The Shotgun	Geoffrey Boothroyd
Sidelocks and Boxlocks	Geoffrey Boothroyd
Single Shot Rifles	James R Grant
Small Arms Makers	Col. Robert Gardner
Small Arms of the World	W H B Smith
Smith & Wesson Hand Guns	R C McHenry and W F Roper
Sporting Guns	Richard Akehurst
Under Five Flags - The Story of the Kynoch Works, Witton, Birmingham	Kynoch Press
The Webley Story	Wm C Dowell
Webley & Scott 1870-1968	C Thurlow Craig & E Bewley
The Westley Richards Firm 1812-1913	L B Taylor
Winchester: The Gun that Won The West	H F Williamson